Footnotes

• This right-hand drive Silver Wraith was delivered new to a customer in New York State early in 1948 and was, therefore, never registered in the UK until imported by the vendors in 2000. (Details of its early history are available on request). The car was acquired in 1988 when the vendors were living in the USA. It was a ‘rolling wreck’ at that time, having been left standing in a damp garage in North Chicago for some 15 years. The previous owner had started to dismantle the ’Wraith for restoration but, like so many others, abandoned the attempt. It is believed that the car had covered relatively few miles, not that it mattered much because its condition was very poor and the engine had seized.
  ‘WZB28’ was personally restored by the vendors in the 1990s, calling on professional help with paintwork, trim and the restoration of interior woodwork, which was all re-veneered. This was a body-off project and nothing was left untouched (except the gearbox, which was about the only part that worked!) right down to powder coating of the bare chassis. All the work is fully documented and there are a great many photographs on file plus video footage taken during the restoration.
  Since completion, the car has only ever been driven any distance on the road once, in 1999 for the R-ROC regional concours in Chicago where it was awarded ‘Best of Show’ out of close to 100 Rolls-Royce and Bentley vehicles. The ’Wraith now forms part of a private museum collection of other early as well as classic Rolls-Royce cars and British motorcycles, being maintained by its enthusiast owner and driven regularly on a private estate.
  As might be expected after such an extensive rebuild, the car starts and runs well, the engine smooth, powerful and running like the proverbial Swiss watch, although the running in process has yet to be competed. Indeed, the whole vehicle is just like new and can be expected to provide many years of reliable and enjoyable driving. It is also highly useable under modern driving conditions, being quite swift and responsive. For safety reasons, turn signals have been incorporated in the running lights, though the original trafficators are still in place and operational. In short: everything works as it should.
  A wonderfully majestic vehicle of great presence and proven concours-winning potential, the car is presented in excellent condition in every respect and comes with an original leather suitcase; tailored dust cover; full tool kit (beautifully restored); original handbook and reprint of same; parts list and workshop manual. Currently taxed and MoT tested, it is offered with a very comprehensive history file containing photographs, video recordings of the strip-down process, invoices, bills; many pages of detailed notes; miscellaneous correspondence; build sheets; import documentation; SORNs, MoTs and old tax discs; Swansea V5; and the R-ROC concours award and regional publication featuring it on the front cover.
  

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Category: Motoring / Motor Cars

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